Three statistics that say the Seahawks have the best defense in the NFL

Most years, it’s hard to get a straight answer out of statistics and analytics. Each one will drive you to a different conclusion, and it all comes down to which ones you trust the most. There are ways to twist and massage pretty much anything to produce a desired outcome. But then, you have things like this, where there’s only one conclusion to draw.

The 2025 Seattle Seahawks had, by most major measures, the best defense in football. They produced a level of consensus that you don’t see all the time. They accomplished the difficult task of uniting the, in my opinion, three most telling statistics under one tent. Let’s take a look, starting with the most obvious one.

Points Per Game

When the Indianapolis Colts kicked a 22 yard field goal with 2:39 left in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s Colts-Texans game, he didn’t just give the team a short-lived lead, he also gave Seattle’s defense the scoring title. The Texans entered the day just needing to hold Indianapolis to under 27 points to secure it. That kick pushed Indy’s total to 30.

It was a surprising outcome, given the Colts were starting a third string rookie quarterback, so much so that most Seahawks fans probably weren’t even thinking about it before kickoff. It pushed Houston’s points allowed total to 295, just topping Seattle’s 292. Seattle and Houston are the only two teams in the NFL this year to allow under 300 points.

While a very basic and occasionally misleading stat, points per game allowed is also obviously very important, in a league where the winners and losers of games are determined by points scored and points allowed. If you allowed fewer points than anyone else, you’re certainly doing something right, and are probably a very good team.

Estimated Points Added

This was another statistic where the Houston Texans looked likely to win, holding a pretty strong lead for much of the season. But the Week Eighteen slipup against Indianapolis (caused partially, but not entirely, by playing backups in the second half) pushed them down to second place, allowing Seattle to take first place.

Seattle’s EPA per play stands at -0.113, just barely topping Houston’s -0.108. If you want to get more granular, the Seahawks also lead the league in Defensive Rush EPA at -0.206 (New Orleans is second at -0.136), and Defensive Rush Success Rate at 35.8% (Denver is second here with 36.3%).

Estimated Points Added is a statistic that attempts to evaluate every play individually on its own merits, looking at how good a job the play did at adding or subtracting points from the team with the ball, independent of what the play ended up actually leading to. If you’re leading the league here, you’re doing a phenomenal job keeping up a high level of play on most of your snaps.

Defense-adjusted Value Over Average

Another complicated statistic that attempts to capture each play’s value individually, with comparisons to league average and game situation adjustments to try to really get to the heart of what value is, while cutting out the noise. Another one of my favorites when it comes to trying to really evaluate how good or bad teams are.

And you better believe the Seahawks were #1 here, overall and defensively. In fact, not only was their 2025 defense the best in the NFL for the current season, it ranked as the 12th best DVOA defense since 1978. It’s the best DVOA score for a defense this decade so far, and the best in franchise history, at -24.2%.

That’s right, that score is actually superior to the 2013 Seahawks that won the Super Bowl. If you trust DVOA to steer you correctly, this current squad is better than the Legion of Boom, a concept that I’m not quite sure I’m ready to accept, but am open to given how light’s out they’ve been this season.

So, when all three of these statistics are leading you in the same direction, you’re probably headed the right way. And when you get to the final spot in your journey, you’ll be looking at a defense that is ready to win a championship.

Ask the great Aaron Rodgers about this defense. — Seattle Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99) and defensive tackle Byron Murphy II (91) sack Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8). | Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

Points Per Game

Estimated Points Added

Defense-adjusted Value Over Average

More Seahawks on SI stories